But before Goethe’s popular retelling made Faust an Enlightenment symbol for humanity's vaunting ambition, he was just a man and he was almost certainly born around 1480.

Johann Georg Faust studied at Heidelberg University and is thought to have died around 1540. Though there are contemporary records that speak of how knowledgeable and well-travelled he was, little more is known of his life – other than that he was said to have come to a violent death, possibly in an explosion.

Less than fifty years after his death, however, the Faust myth had a deal more flesh on its bones. In the Faustbuch, a text written in 1587 and translated into English shortly afterwards, we are introduced to a man who ‘forgot the Lord his maker, and Christ his redeemer, became an enemy unto all man-kinde’ and ‘began to practice in his divellish Arte’.

The anonymous narrator leads us through Faust’s life, detailing – with undeniable relish – the food he eats (the best food and wine stolen from the cellars of European nobility), the magic he and Mephistopheles perform (which, among other devilry, resulted in Faust’s garden springing into full bloom in the depths of winter, to the astonishment of his neighbours) and the women Mephistopheles procured for the scholar (‘Seven of the fayrest women that he could finde in all those countries he have traveiled in’).

Finally, his violent end is described in graphic detail: ‘All the hall lay besprinckled with blood, his braines cleaving to the wall: for the Divel had beaten him from one wall against another, in one corner lay his eyes, in another his teeth, a pitifull and fearefull sight to beholde.’

The Faustbuch crafts a Christian morality tale out of this fantastical story, and ends with a prayer. But it wasn’t the Christian message that ensured the story’s lasting appeal. It was Faust’s ambition – and (much like Don Juan) all the fun he has on the road to damnation.

This was fertile ground for playwright Christopher Marlowe. In his version of the Faust legend, The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus (1592), he turns Faust into a Renaissance scholar straining at the limits of the knowledge of the time:

'The end of physic is our body’s health. Why Faust, hast thou not attain’d that end? Is not thy common talk found aphorisms? […] Yet art thou still but Faustus, and a man. Couldst thou make men to live eternally, Or, being dead, raise them to life again, Then this profession were to be esteem'd.'

Faust becomes a hero for an age of advances in science, technology and philosophy, an age some scholars claim was the period of greatest religious scepticism before our own. Marlowe’s Faust is an Icarus with wings not of feathers but knowledge.

In the 1770s, Goethe began to craft a post-theological Faust for the Enlightenment. This Faustus pities Mephistopheles’s attempt to seduce him with traditional sinful temptations: ‘Poor devil! What can you offer to me? A mind like yours, how can it comprehend / A human spirit’s high activity?’. The impact of Goethe’s play has been such that the figure of Faust has become a symbol for modern Western man.

Every generation re-imagines Faust in its own image, and Faustian Pack composers Luke Bedford and Matthew Herbert are only the latest interpreters in a long line. Even in this age of globalism, agnosticism and multiculturalism, we are as fascinated and haunted by Faust as were those medieval neighbours, gazing at his magical garden five hundred years ago.

Award-winning poet and author Ruth Padel has joined The Royal Opera as its first Writer in Residence. In an ongoing blog series she has been tracking rehearsals for the three operas in The Royal Opera's Faustian Pack – a revival of Gounod's Faust on the main stage with two new opera commissions, by Luke Bedford and Matthew Herbert, each inspired by the Faust myth.

The story so far:

#1: What is Opera?
Two performing spaces of the Royal Opera House are being used in the Faustian Pack: the grand main stage and the intimate Linbury Studio Theatre. In preparation for Matthew Herbert's The CrackleRuth encounters the app Chirp: 'A production assistant has already taken a photo of me on her phone and turned it into something that sounds like a sparrow on speed.'

#2: The Youth Opera Company rehearsing The Crackle
In the Clore Studio upstairs at the Royal Opera House, Ruth watches children of the Youth Opera Company (YOC) rehearse with their director Karen Gillingham: 'The children are learning the magic of stage language, how to build group reaction by movement as well as song. The sunlit studio is filled with silent intense imagining.'

#6: Calling for Faust
Backstage at the Royal Opera House for rehearsals of Gounod’s Faust: 'So much is going on in the Royal Opera House all the time. It’s like a city. Opera is all about collaboration and Covent Garden gets the best.'

#7: The Devil's Way In: Luke Bedford's Through His Teeth
At the first read-through for Luke's new opera, Ruth talks to conductor Sian Edwards about the challenges of being a female conductor. '“It’s a question of how you find your voice,” Sian told me. “How you make your own position in a traditional man’s role: a situation so clearly created over the centuries by men, for men.”'

#9: Crackling Energy
At a rehearsal for The Crackle, children and adult performers are brought together. Foley artist Barnaby Smyth will be sitting in the orchestra pit; Ruth asks him what he'll wear: '“Devil’s horns, perhaps.” He is still working out exactly what props he needs to get the right sounds. “I want a Gestapo-ish vibe,” he says.'

Two new Royal Opera commissions will have their world premiere in the Linbury Studio Theatre this April as part of A Faustian Pack, a series that explores the fascination of the Faust legend.

‘Faust is the story of an educated person who makes a pact with the devil and exchanges his soul in return for unlimited knowledge,’ says John Fulljames. ‘This myth is so rich and complex, that it has inspired many different interpretations over history - there are more than 40 operas. A Faustian Pack is a set of projects that will re-interpret the Faust myth for today.’ Find out more from John Fulljames about the lure of the Faustian legend.

In The Crackle, pioneering sound artist Matthew Herbert explores the Faustian myth in the context of a technological revolution. Incorporating new digital technologies into the music, including a data-sharing app called Chirp, he questions whether music itself can be a Faustian protagonist.

Through His Teeth runs from 3-11 April 2014. Tickets are available. The production is staged with generous philanthropic support from The John S Cohen Foundation, the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation, the Boltini Trust and the RVW Trust, with Research and Development generously supported by PRS for Music Foundation.

First things first, what does it do? Essentially Chirp lets people share links via sound. If you take a photo for example, Chirp stores the photo in the Cloud and creates a ‘chirp’ – a sequence of 20 notes – which can be understood as a link by any device with the app. So you could send a photo from one smart phone to any number of devices within hearing distance.

But for sound artist Matthew Herbert, the most interesting thing about Chirp is how it affects the way we think about music.

‘I think Chirp changes everything’, he explains. ‘Up to now, melody has just been based on an emotion or it’s been a metaphor. But now melody can transmit data as well and I think that’s a really profound shift in what music is. If a singer could sing the exact notes at 170 beats per minute they’d be able to sing you a PDF, which is a pretty extraordinary shift in what music can do.’

The potential uses for the app are far-reaching. Once you can transmit data between smart phones via sound, why shouldn’t everything that makes a sound broadcast information? You can see why this forward-looking app might have attracted the interest of Herbert, whose new opera is inspired by the story of one of the most ambitious men in Western art – Faust.

‘The great thing about Chirp is the broadcast mechanism, so you can broadcast these little melodies out into a public space and, if they’ve got the app open on their phone, they can receive it. So it’s a very exciting way of breaking the fourth wall and allowing the audience to get extra information, extra images, extra experience.’

Which is, in fact, how the app will be used during performances of The Crackle. Audience members will be encouraged to leave their phones on for the evening (something which Herbert admits feels ‘quite transgressive’) and, if they wish, interact with the performance via the app.

‘Phones are so ubiquitous in our lives – I leave my phone on all the time on silent. And if you’re stuck in a dark room for four hours at the theatre and you’ve hired a babysitter you want to check that your kids are ok. So most people have their phones on. We have to find a new way of listening in the theatre, so that if a phone goes off in the most crucial part, we don’t get frustrated by it.’

So if you’re planning to come along, why not download the app – available from the App Store and on Google Play – onto your smartphone before the performance?

The Commission/Café Kafka (Linbury Studio Theatre) NEW17–19 March
An unmissable double bill in the Linbury Studio Theatre, showcasing new work by Elspeth Brooke and Francisco Coll, two of opera’s brightest talents.

Through His Teeth (Linbury Studio Theatre) NEW
3–11 April
The Royal Opera commissions rising star Luke Bedford to create a companion piece to Gounod’s Faust.

The Crackle(Linbury Studio Theatre) NEW
5–12 April
Acclaimed electronic composer Matthew Herbert presents a contrasting take on Gounod’s Faust, commissioned by The Royal Opera.

Faust
Dir: David McVicar
4 – 25 April
David McVicar’s spectacular production of Gounod’s grand opera is set in decadent 1870s Paris.

Jonas Kaufmann– Winterreise6 April
One of the world's leading tenors sings Schubert's sublime song cycle on the Royal Opera House main stage.

La traviata
Dir: Richard Eyre
19 April – 20 May
Verdi’s tragic tale of a Parisian courtesan who sacrifices all for love is vividly presented in Richard Eyre’s production.

Le nozze di Figaro
Dir: David McVicar
16 September–15 May
Revolution is in the air in David McVicar’s production of Mozart’s glorious comedy.

Tosca
Dir: Jonathan Kent
10 May–26 June
Drama, passion and fabulous music – Tosca is one of the great evenings of opera. Jonathan Kent’s production is set against the turbulent backdrop of Rome in 1800.

Dialogues des Carmelites NEW
Dir: Robert Carsen
29 May–11 June
Robert Carsen’s award-winning production of Poulenc’s astonishing opera is set during the violent upheaval of the French Revolution.

Ballet and Dance

The Sleeping Beauty
22 February–9 April
Journey with The Royal Ballet to an enchanted world of princesses, fairy godmothers and magic spells in Petipa’s classic ballet.

Ballet Black (Linbury Studio Theatre)
25 February–4 March
Cassa Pancho’s company of black and Asian classically trained dancers returns to the Linbury Studio Theatre with a dynamic new programme.

The Winter’s Tale NEW
10 April–8 May
The world premiere of a new full-length ballet by Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon, based on Shakespeare’s enduring tale of love, loss and reconciliation.

If Play is Play… NEW (Linbury Studio Theatre)
16–24 April
HeadSpaceDance directors and curators Christopher Akrill and Charlotte Broom bring a programme of new work by contemporary choreographers to the Linbury Studio Theatre.

Ex nihilo/The Human Edge NEW (Linbury Studio Theatre)
29–30 April
Royal Ballet Choreographic Affiliate Mayuri Boonham creates two world premieres in the Linbury Studio Theatre in which South Asian dance engages with classical ballet.

Verve(Linbury Studio Theatre)6 May 2014
The Northern School of Contemporary Dance presents its annual post-graduate performance.

Northern Ballet(Linbury Studio Theatre)8–10 May
One of the UK's top ballet companies visits the Linbury Studio Theatre with a captivating mixed programme.

Ballet Central(Linbury Studio Theatre)11 May
Ballet Central offers an exciting programme of ballet, contemporary and jazz dance from a mixture of highly acclaimed and emerging choreographers, newly commissioned works and much-loved revivals.

The Measures Taken NEW (Linbury Studio Theatre)
15–16 May
Cutting-edge technology meets thrilling choreography in a mixed programme by Royal Ballet Choreographic Affiliate Alexander Whitley.

Dutch National Ballet(Linbury Studio Theatre)28 - 29 May
Dutch National Ballet's new Junior Company performs a mixed programme of classical, contemporary and new work.

To accompany the productions on-stage, Royal Opera House Restaurants are providing menus tailored specially for each production. Find out more closer to the time in our Restaurants and Bars section.

]]>http://www.roh.org.uk/news/spring-season-2014/feed47Deloitte Ignite preview: Six of the besthttp://www.roh.org.uk/news/deloitte-ignite-preview-six-of-the-best
http://www.roh.org.uk/news/deloitte-ignite-preview-six-of-the-best#commentsThu, 25 Aug 2011 12:12:19 +0000Chris Shipmanhttp://blog.roh.org.uk/?p=4721With the Mike Figgis-curated Deloitte Ignite Festival with its theme of 'Just tell the truth' opening tomorrow (Sept 2nd), we thought we'd delve into the digital depths of YouTube to have a look at the work of a few of those involved...

Mark Thomas

Writer, activist and comedian Mark Thomas may be known for his political activism, but for Deloitte Ignite he presents the personal tale of his father's unlikely love of opera - a man with an affinity for both profanity and Puccini who in his later years has developed the debilitating illness progressive supranuclear palsy. This clip shows Thomas taking on the might of McDonalds back in the 1990s:

Mara Carlyle

Dubbed "The Missy Elliot of the classical world", the acclaimed Mara Carlyle straddles contemporary pop and classical music. Having released her album Floreat on August 22nd, Mara will be talking about the songwriting process and playing songs that reflect the more classical side of her material.

Alber Elbaz

Internationally acclaimed fashion designer and Lanvin creative director Alber Elbaz will be throwing some light on the nature of truth and catwalk. In this short interview from last year's Paris Fashion Week, Alber talks to the New York Times about his work and designing for women:

Matthew Herbert

Matthew Herbert is no ordinary musician/producer. One Pig - his latest work to receive its world premiere at Deloitte Ignite - sees him create a audiovisual elegy to the life of a Pig using audio samples of the animal's life from birth to death in order to pose questions surrounding the consequences of our actions. The performance will also feature instruments made from his pig as well as onstage cookery. In this clip, Matthew talks about the concept and the production of the piece:

Eva Yerbabuena

One of the world's premier exponents of flamenco, dancer Eva Yerbabuena has received acclaim and awards the world over. At Deloitte Ignite, she performs with Spanish guitarist Paco Jarana, her husband and co-director of Eva Yerbabuena Ballet Flamenco.

Boudicca

Fancy yourself as a Fashionista? Transforming the Clore Studio into a fashion house, festival goers are invited to drop in and work with Zowie Broach and Brian Kirkby AKA Boudicca as they create continually evolving couture.